Honenu Attorney Menashe Yado; Photo credit: Honenu
Monday, February 17, 2025, 17:14 Ten combat soldiers from IDF Unit 100 were detained in July 2024 at the Sde Teiman military base on suspicion of assaulting a Nukhba terrorist prisoner who took part in the Simhat Torah massacre (October 7). An investigation was launched by the Military Criminal Investigation Division, and the case was placed under a gag order which banned publication of the soldiers’ personal details. The Mikan Channel of the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation (Channel 13) violated the gag order, and video clips and investigative material were also leaked from the IDF to Guy Peleg, a journalist with Channel 12 (Israel).
Six months ago, Honenu Attorneys Menashe Yado and Nati Rom filed an NIS 600,000 civil suit at the Jerusalem Magistrates Court for violation of privacy against the IDF and the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation on behalf of two of the soldiers who were detained and whose identities were revealed in a leaked recording. The government has not yet filed a statement of defense or responded to the suit, although the deadline set by law has passed. It recently requested an extension for the fourth time.
Attorney Yado leveled sharp criticism at the government for the delay in responding to the suit and said, “We are fighting a legal battle to uncover the truth and reveal the sources who caused tremendous damage to the soldiers, their families, and the State of Israel.”
In July 2024, ten combat soldiers from Unit 100 were detained at the Sde Teiman military base on suspicion of assaulting a Nukhba terrorist prisoner who took part in the Simhat Torah massacre (October 7). Five of the soldiers were released within a month. The remaining five soldiers were held in remand for over a month, and after their release were placed under nighttime house arrest. In September 2024 they were allowed to return to work, and in November 2024 they were released from nighttime house arrest.
In light of the media leak in the case, the Beit Lid Military Court of Appeals ruled that, “The Military Advocate General is required to promptly reply to the question of how investigative material reached the news media, in light of the claims of possible damage to the integrity of the investigation.”
Attorney Rom wrote a letter to the Attorney General demanding that she order an investigation into the leak and put those responsible for it on trial. The Attorney General replied that she had transferred the handling of the investigation to the IDF.
Following the last house arrest extension, the Honenu Attorneys Rom and Keidar requested to receive the investigative material in the case from the military prosecution.
Please click here for a description by the detained Sde Teiman soldiers of the incident.
Please click here for a statement from Hila, the wife of one of the soldiers detained at the Sde Teiman military base on suspicion of assaulting a Nukhba terrorist, who leveled sharp criticism at the Military Advocate General over his detention.
On July 30, the court ignored the soldiers’ concerned families and held a hearing in their absence.
Initially, Honenu Attorneys Rom and Keidar were prevented on various pretexts from meeting with the detainees and granting them legal counsel.